Sania Mirza, who won the WTA doubles title in Singapore with Martina Hingis, has opened the doors to a possible Indian mixed doubles pair with Rohan Bopanna.
Bopanna teamed up with Florin Mergea in the recent ATP Finals in London where they lost against Jean Julien Tecau and Horia Tecau in the final in straight sets with 4-6 3-6.
After the news that Roger Federer will team up with Martina Hingis, another strong double team could fight for a medal in the mixed doubles at next summer’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Mirza and Bopanna are currently playing for the Indian Aces in the IPTL, where they lost only one mixed doubles contest. They are very good friends on and off the court.
“Rohan was my first partner when I was 14 years old. We have played together in the Hopman Cup too. I think we didn’t lose for 8-9 years. Over the years we know each other so well, and we are able to anticipate each other’s games. There are so many things which go unsaid in our equation when we are playing. We just know how we are going to react to a certain situation in a match. The beauty of our relationship is that it doesn’t resolve around tennis. He is my best friend off the court too, so it doesn’t mean that I have to play with him all the time. We would play great tennis together. I would love to partner him”, said Sania Mirza
Mirza spoke about the IPTL and its positive aspects. She belives that this exhibition tournament has helped players in making friends on the tour.
“When I meet Indian Aces coach-cum player Fabrice Santoro on tour, I can talk to him more and I can say I can say that I have a great new friend in Fabrice. I have also met some players for the first time here at the IPTL, which is great. We are a great team. It’s great to keep the winning form going. Tennis players tend to feel lonely, in the sense we travel alone on the tour. But the IPTL has been different. We are all enjoying the team bonding. We look out for each other during matches”, said Mirza.
